Dane Court Grammar School 11+ Exam

Key information about Dane Court Grammar School

Dane Court Grammar School is a highly selective grammar school in Kent.

Dane Court Grammar School uses the Kent Test for Year 7 entry. There is no separate Dane Court entrance test for normal Year 7 admissions.

Passing the Kent Test does not guarantee a place. If more eligible children apply than there are places available, Dane Court uses its published oversubscription criteria to determine which applicants are offered places.

Dane Court Grammar School at a glance

School: Dane Court Grammar School

Address: Broadstairs Road, Broadstairs, Kent, CT10 2RT

Entry Age: 11+/Year 7

School Website: www.danecourt.kent.sch.uk

Gender: Mixed

Number of pupils: 1152

Year 7 Places: 165

Admissions: Selective

Kent Test Date: 10 September 2026 (Kent Primary Schools)

12-13 September (Non-Kent Primary Schools)

Results: 15 October 2026

Kent Test Provider: GL Assessment

About Dane Court Grammar School

Dane Court Grammar School was founded in 1957 and is a mixed grammar school in Broadstairs, Kent. he school is part of Coastal Academies Trust, a multi-academy trust based in Kent that supports and improves education across its member schools through shared expertise, strong leadership and collaborative working.

The school has specialised in languages since 2003. It recently completed a £20 million rebuilding programme, meaning the school now has state-of-the-art facilities.

Dane Court is one of only a handful of schools in the UK to offer both the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) and the Careers-related Programme (IBCP).

Dane Court Grammar School was judged ‘Good’ by Ofsted in 2022. The school’s Sixth Form provision was graded ‘Outstanding’.

View Dane Court Grammar School's Ofsted report here.

Preparing for Dane Court Grammar School 11+?

Preparing for the 11+ can feel overwhelming, especially with different exam formats and timelines to consider. If you’d like structured guidance and personalised support, you can find out more about our 11+ tuition services using the link below.

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The Kent 11+ Exam

Your child will need to develop the following skills:

English

Maths

Verbal Reasoning

Non-Verbal Reasoning

Writing Skills*

* A 40-minute writing exercise is also completed as part of the Kent Test. It is not marked and does not contribute to the final Kent Test score, but it may be considered by a local headteacher assessment panel where required.

Kent 11+ Exam Format

The tests are multiple-choice with a separate answer sheet. They are marked by an automated marking machine.

The first test will be an English and maths paper and will take 1 hour. Each section will involve a 5-minute practice exercise followed by a 25-minute test. The English section will involve a comprehension exercise as well as some additional questions drawn from a set designed to test literacy skills.

The second test will be a reasoning paper. It will take about 1 hour, including the practice sections and questions. It will contain a verbal reasoning section and a non-verbal reasoning section of roughly the same length. The non-verbal reasoning will be split into short sections, administered and timed individually.

There will also be a writing exercise which will not be marked but may be used by a local headteacher panel as part of the headteacher assessment stage of the process. 40 minutes will be allowed for the writing task, including 10 minutes planning time.

Kent 11+ Familiarisation Paper

This document explains the Kent Test papers for children who will take them.

Familiarisation Paper

Kent 11+ Application Process

In the first instance, parents must register their child to sit the Kent Test, which can be done online via Kent County Council. Once students have taken the test in September, parents will receive their results in October and must then submit their Secondary School Common Application Form (SCAF) via the Kent local authority website.

Kent 11+ Standardised Scores

Your child will get 3 standardised scores, one for English, one for maths and one for reasoning, and a total (aggregate) score. Standardisation is a statistical process which compares your child's performance with the average performance of other children in each test. A slight adjustment is made to take account of each child's age so that the youngest are not at a disadvantage.

The grammar school threshold for the test will not be published until the results have been sent out.

In order to calculate a standardised score the company producing and marking the tests will create a reference table – called a “look-up table” – for each test paper that is written, and the table is specific to that test paper, because it takes account of the difficulty of the paper. The minimum standardised score is derived from the look-up table and the actual number will vary depending on the average score of all those taking the test and the number of applicants.

Below is an example look-up table. The vertical axis is the “raw score”, i.e. the number (percentage) of actual questions that a child gets right on a paper. The horizontal axis represents the age of the child at the time of taking the exam, shown as years + months.

Kent 11+ Grammar School Assessment Threshold

In 2025, the Kent Test grammar-school assessment threshold was 332, with no individual score below 108. Test scores ranged from 69 to 141. The highest possible total score is 423.

Passing the Kent Test does not guarantee a place at Dane Court Grammar School. The Kent Test determines whether a child is assessed as suitable for grammar school; where more eligible children apply than there are places available, Dane Court applies its published oversubscription criteria to determine which children are offered places.

Kent 11+ Appeals

If your child does not reach the Kent Test grammar-school assessment threshold, their case may be considered through the local Head Teacher Assessment Panel process. The panel can consider evidence such as your child's achievement at school, examples of their work and the writing exercise completed during the Kent Test before making a decision on grammar-school suitability.

If your child is not assessed as suitable for grammar school, or a review is unsuccessful, you still have the right to appeal after school places have been allocated. Appeals are heard by an Independent Appeals Panel.

Still unsure about next steps?

Our 11+ admissions consultations help parents think through school choice, entrance pathways and preparation priorities before committing to preparation.

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In-Year Applications at Dane Court Grammar School

Parents may apply for a place for their child at any time outside the normal admissions round. As with applications made during the standard admissions process, all children who have passed either the Kent Test or the school-administered test, and whose Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) names the school, will be considered for admission.

If a student has passed the Kent Test or the school-administered Cognitive Ability Test in the relevant academic year and a place is available in the year group applied for, an offer will be made.

Where no places are available at the time of application, the child’s name will be placed on the waiting list for the appropriate year group.

FAQs: Dane Court Grammar School Admissions Process

The questions below address the issues parents most commonly misunderstand when considering this school.

How hard is it to gain admission to Dane Court Grammar School?

Dane Court Grammar School is a selective grammar school, so children must be assessed as suitable for grammar school before they can be considered for admission. Passing the Kent Test does not guarantee a place. If more eligible children apply than there are places available, Dane Court's published oversubscription criteria determine which applicants are offered places.

If my child passes the test, will they automatically be accepted?

Passing the Kent Test does not guarantee a place at Dane Court Grammar School. If more eligible applicants apply than there are places available, the school's oversubscription criteria are used to determine which applicants are offered places.

What is actually tested in the entrance exam for Dane Court Grammar School?

The Kent Test assesses English, Mathematics, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. There is also a 40-minute writing exercise, but this is not marked as part of the standardised Kent Test score.

What does oversubscription to a school mean exactly?

Oversubscription means that more children apply for a school than there are places available.

When the school is oversubscribed, how does the school decide which children are given priority for admission?

Before oversubscription criteria are applied, children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) that names the school will be offered a place.

If the number of applications exceeds the number of places available, places will be allocated in the following order of priority:

Looked After Children and Previously Looked After Children
Children who are currently in care or who were previously in care.
Health and Special Access Reasons
Priority may be given where a child’s physical or mental health needs, or those of a parent or guardian, make attendance at this specific school essential.
Children Eligible for Pupil Premium
Children who have been registered for free school meals at any point within the last six years.
Sibling Link (Current Family Association)
Children who have a sibling attending the school at the time of entry.
Distance from Home to School
Priority is given to children who live closest to the school, measured in a straight line using the National Land and Property Gazetteer.

Do I have to live in Kent to apply to Dane Court Grammar School?

No — you do not have to live in Kent to apply to Dane Court Grammar School.

Families living outside Kent are welcome to apply and register for the entrance assessments. However, if the school is oversubscribed, distance from home to school is one of the factors used in the oversubscription criteria, which can make it more competitive for applicants who live further away.

What is the admissions process for this school?

Register for the Kent Test (11+)
Parents must register their child for the Kent Test through Kent County Council by the published deadline.

Receive test results
You will be informed whether your child has met the grammar school standard.

Submit the Secondary Common Application Form (SCAF)
If your child is eligible under the school's Pupil Premium criterion, you may also need to complete the school's Supplementary Information Form (SIF).

Submit the Supplementary Information Form

If your child has been registered for free school meals in the last 6 years, complete this form.

Offers are made
School places are offered on National Offer Day - If more eligible children apply than there are places, oversubscription criteria are used to decide who is offered a place.

Waiting list or appeal (if needed)
If a place is not offered, parents can choose to join the waiting list and/or submit an appeal.

My child has a learning difficulty - will the entrance exam be adjusted to meet their needs?

If your child has a disability or special educational needs which will affect their access to testing, you need to discuss this with their primary school's special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) before you register them for the test as the school will need to apply for any necessary access arrangements.

Does my child need to do 11-plus preparation prior to the exam?

It is helpful for pupils to practise the types of questions they may be asked, particularly verbal and non-verbal reasoning, as these question styles are often unfamiliar to many children. It is also beneficial to become familiar with exam techniques, such as working to time, understanding instructions and managing pressure on the day. Preparation can help identify and bridge any gaps in knowledge and support from an experienced tutor can guide pupils through all of these areas, building confidence and ensuring they are able to show their true ability in the test environment.

Still have questions?

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